Last week I noticed that Pasqualina was beginning to have fuzzies on her neck. At first I thought she just had some pieces from the hay stuck in her fur (it’s been known to happen), but as I looked closer, I realized it was her soft, winter undercoat going bye-bye for the spring.

Goat shedding time

I don’t know if we were so occupied with goat birth last year at this time that I just didn’t notice, but Pasqualina definitely had some major goat hair shedding this year — which gave me a great excuse to get in there and give her a good brushing. I got several full brushes worth of undercoat, which I set free in the Sunday breeze; too bad I don’t know how to spin wool, right?

It was obvious that Pinta also has some shedding once I got to brushing her, but it wasn’t anywhere near as clumpy as Pasqualina’s; they definitely do have different types of hair — Pinta takes after her father — but I’m wondering now whether maybe the first year, their undercoats just aren’t as thick, and Pinta’s will be heavier next winter?

Hi Patty, it really depends on what the hair loss looks like; if s/he is actually getting bald spots, it may be more than simply change of season. Check for other signs of distress as well — not eating, not doing goat-like things, etc. In any event, if it’s enough to worry you even a little bit, I’d suggest having a veterinarian look at it…better safe than sorry!

My goat is only 4 weeks old, she has a bunch of white little dots all over her. I’m not sure if fleas or dry skin? I know goats shed when it starts to get warmer, which it is. We are taking precaution as if she has fleas. Do you think it’s her skin or fleas?

Hi Brenna, I would say it’s most likely dandruff/dandra, flakes of dead skin cells — mine get this around the change of season (even one of my dogs does!). Here is some info on what it could mean and how to treat it, but basically, I just tend to brush my animals more to distribute their natural oils, and that tends to take care of it within a few days: http://www.goatwisdom.com/ch3skin/dandruff.html